Little Falls transcript., 1887-02-25

and should have had to 20, too, and
be buried alive somewhere, suppose,
if my dear little Miss Ruggles had not
happened to be here, and she has tac
ken charge Of me SO kindly!" Take
charge of that mink! I should as soon
have thought OF taking charge of a
will.o'-the. wisp. -
'tNow you see what mean when
say it is necessary here to be always
ON evidence. You're forgotten ifyou're
not. Out Of sight, out of mind. I am
here to be seen. If hadn't been sit.
ting here with you that absurd little
Vonderbust would't have asked ME
to drive, and the others wouldn't all
have gone to pulling caps about wait
ing on me 10 the dog: cart, and Mr..
Dunrobin wonldn't have seen it as he
sat there with his cigar. When have
filled everybody's eyes Mr.. Dunrobin
will begin to see me. So am always
very plainly visible withs my train of
idiots. Dyes, ! am as light as froth,
but it's game as deep as the sea
underneath"
"Bertie, I'm ashamed of human
natule when I hear you talk"
"No OCCASION" crumbling ller bread.
"You wouldn't be ashamed OF me if
were trying to make afortune by what
you call honest labor. Well, if this
isn't labor, l should like to know what
it is."
"Labor!!"
cts labor enough, let me assure
you, just to talk to these swhipper-
snappers, It's more trouble than it
would be to write book to graduate
your conversation to the level of their
little intelects, if they have any intel.
lects-Penhurst, and De Lacy, and
Van Stout, and the whole set. You
have to make believe to each one that
you find him perfectly delightful. If
you're the least atom above his COM
prehension in your talk, or silent, or
slow, good-by; and good-by to one,
goodbye to all. If one sees another
hanging over your chair, he thinks
there's something worth while there,
and he is coming in for his share; but
if he doesn't see anybody he is going
where it is plain there is something
the other fellows admire. Do you see?
Here they come; I thought they
would"
She ran into my room one night be-
fore going down in the german, cam
l all right" she said. "Come down
with me, that's g. dear"
"Why don't you rest to-night??"
asked, not yet aware OF my chaperon-
age.
"Rest!" she said. "As if there we're
any rest in the middle of a campaign!
I'll rest when I'm through"
Bette, I'm afraid"
"What of! That shall fail? Well,
what if I do? Folks have failed before.
And II l fail, life won't be worth
cent, and there's always river you
know"
"Bettie Bennett! I'll have nothing
more to do with you at all. I think
you are"
"As bad as bad can be! Then come
down and help me not to fail. I've
got to dance tonight till the last
dance, and take ices and drink cham.
pagne with the best of them or the
worst OF them, just as if I were to the
manner born. If I don't dance the
first dance, then the othere will think
something's up or nobody wants me,
or I'm an old story, and l shan't
have a partner all the rest of the
night. It's kllling-this pace. Do you
think am falling off any?"
"Falling Off" said I. "There's
nothing to fall off. You'll be the more
piquant and taking the more faded
you are. You'll be prettier at 40
than you are at 20. But O, Bette,
you're awfully old at 2O!"
We'll, my dress is new. And isn't
it lovely?"
1t was q bright gold. .colored satin,
fitting like q glove; and with it she
wore q quantity of topazes, and there
was black swan sd own wrap. to be
left on her chair or to pull up if she
were chilly, and set of with its soft
shadow the perfection OF her perfect
little shape. '"Topazes are cheap"
said she. -"You can buy beauties as
big as the tip of your thumb for $2,5 SO
apiece, in the old country jewelers.
shops. It's the setting that costs;
but nobody need know that isn't l9
carat. 1t isn't everybody would dare
to wear topazes with yellew satin; no
contrast you know. But don't they
makeme look just dripping with light?''
eyes," I answered; "they make you
look like constellation half seen in
sunset. But you're wasted here, Bet
tie. You ought to be in countries
where there are kings; you'd be direct
ing affairs OF state presently"
II shall be content if I can direct
this affair."" she said, with her gay
laugh. "Come! I've just given Caro-
my turquoises. By the way, to tell
the truth, there not the least becom-
ing to me, and she admired them so.
There's another part of the labor you
have to keep on the best OF terms
with the other girls, unless you are
perfectly assured that there's no need
OF it, or else they will tear you to
pieces. Sweet life!"
1t was a triumph that Bette had
that night. The beauties, the hero
ines, the basbleus and the sangre-azuls
were nowhere, as she said afterwards
in her own dialect. She was surround
ed like queen-bee with workers. She
had bouquets by the dozen, so that
her lovers had to help her hold them.
She gave them quietly to the boquet-
less girls, in pursuit of her plan, you
might have said, but really, I dare
say, because she had a kind heart un-
der all her artifice and audacity, II
only gave one to Helen Peterson, and
another to Virginia Lamb, that hap
pened to be duplicates of some kept,
because their mothers were so mad at
their neglect, and I was afraid they
might begin to show their claws" she
said next day. why, didn't you see
ME 60 and sit down by Mrs. Lamb? I
was praising Virginia to her. l was
wishing ! only had Virginia's complex
ion-and l wish had! O, you have
to kQtQu to the chaner0na too or